BC students selected for participation in Houston-area safety audit program

Six Brazosport College Safety, Health and Environmental Management (SHEM) students were recently selected to participate in the Houston Business Roundtable Safety Excellence Awards audit program. Pictured are, from left, Colby Sims, Johnny Rincon, Ashley Green, Camy Christie, Kenja Vargas and BC Safety, Health and Environmental Management Program Chair Sam Chamberlain. Not pictured is Gabriel Servin.

Six Brazosport College Safety, Health and Environmental Management (SHEM) students were recently selected to participate in the Houston Business Roundtable Safety Excellence Awards audit program.

The students — Johnny Rincon, Kenja Vargas, Colby Sims, Ashley Green, Camy Christie and Gabriel Servin — were selected by the Houston Business Roundtable (HBR) committee and participated as members of the HBR Audit Team. The students were part of teams that audited numerous chemical, construction and refinery sites along the Texas Gulf Coast.

By participating in this program, the students achieved a real-world education regarding top-level safety and environmental compliance, regarding policies, practices and procedures at these companies.

“The knowledge I gained from being a part of the HBR audit program helped me to understand that safety starts with having the right attitude in the workplace,” Rincon said of his participation in the program. “The safety professionals I was able to team up with taught me that dedication to safety is top priority and ensures that our job sites are safe and healthy places for our team members to work.”

The BC students, which were nominated by BC Safety, Health and Environmental Management Program Chair Sam Chamberlain, all shared similar opinions about the positive learning experiences they received by participating in the program.

“It was an awesome opportunity being able to participate in the annual safety audits,” Vargas said. “I look forward to getting the opportunity to participate in this experience again one day and take everything I learned and apply it to my future job as a safety professional.

Partnered by the HBR and the Health and Safety Council (HASC), the Safety Excellence Awards is presented annually to contractors or subcontractors in the Texas Gulf Coast Area who have achieved an outstanding record of on-the-job safety promotion and performance at a site or as a business during the year completed.

“HBR and HASC believe that the contract companies involved in this award process continue to develop and improve their safety processes year after year, creating world-class safety programs better than any other group of workers in the world,” said HBR Executive Director Willie Wells. “Throughout this year's Safety Excellence Awards process, HBR’s goal is to continue to keep health and safety at the forefront of their priorities. HBR is committed to continuous improvement of the process to ensure the safety of all individuals involved while maintaining the quality and integrity of the safety audits.”

The true purpose of the award process is for the participants to learn through observing and sharing of best practices. The HBR Safety Excellence Awards audit teams annually go through the process of selecting the best safety performers among contractors and subcontractors, nominated by owner or contractor companies. The nominees, finalists and winners of each category are recognized during the annual Safety Excellence Awards Banquet on May 19 at Moody Gardens in Galveston.

The year 2023 is the 50th anniversary of the HBR, as well as the 36th anniversary of the Safety Excellence Awards, which brings together chemical, refining, and energy companies on the Gulf Coast in a cooperative and collaborative effort with contract companies to improve on-site safety, reduce accidents, and, most importantly, reduce injuries to personnel.

For more information on Brazosport College’s SHEM program, call (979) 230-3508. To learn more about the HBR and HASC Safety Excellence Awards, visit houbrt.com/processes/awards/.